Welcome Home, Wayward Son's (and Daughter)
by Ultra-Pop
Summary: Returning 3 Captains (and Mashiro) to Soul Society was a lot easier than they thought. Unfortunately they have to be the ones to pick up the pieces of their broken divisions, luckily Shinigami are nothing if not resilient.


"Yo."

That had been the first thing Momo Hinamori heard Shinji Hirako say. Dressed in his captain's uniform on the first morning he returned as Captain of the 5th Division, he was a tall, thin man with straight blonde hair and a smile almost as wide as his whole face, his manner and appearance did nothing to elude his power. Only hearing about him, and catching a glimpse as Yamamoto welcomed them back into the Soul Society, Momo was excited to meet her new boss.

Despite it being a little past 6 in the morning he seemed alert and awake, unlike Hinamori who looked and was tired. She prepared her and him some tea for the day inside their office, till now usually occupied only by "acting Captain" Hinamori herself.

The morning was one usual of Soul Society, bright and relatively cloudless. Cool as the sun had only risen, but warming up quickly.

"Good morning Captain," she gave a bow while holding back a yawn, "are you ready for your first day back?" she asked politely to the man she would be working with for (hopefully) a long time.

From what she heard from Lieutenant Matsumoto, who heard it from Captain Kyoraku, Hirako was the first to suspect Aizen. Today was her first chance to ask him about their connection and history.

"Well," he drawled out the middle syllable, "it ain't technically my first day back yet, Old Man Yama isn't gonna sign us back in till next week, this is just a transition period. Dumb rules and all that." He glanced out the window into the

A little surprised at her own forgetfulness she merely replied by nodding and saying "Ah. My apologies sir." She really needed that tea. Like now.

Her captain patted her on the head, "No need to be so humble Hina-chan," he grinned down at her "besides, it's too early to be thinking, I'm lucky and got me an early night yesterday." He stretched and picked up the drink he was handed. "Thank ya." Sipping it he said "You make good tea Hinamori, you gotta teach me the old fashion ways, I'm too used to buying it from a convenience store, or letting Kensei make it."

She smiled a bit more, glad that Shinji seemed affable and nice, and had his share of stories to share. "Are you ready to oversee the Division sir?" Sipping in her own tea and pointing outside.

Shinji walked by her, "Been long enough, too impatient to wait any longer. Let's move." She declined to mention his quiet frown on the way through the barracks.

"Let's hope they haven't forgotten this pretty face in 100 years." Shinji said trying to lighten the mood. Unknown to Momo, Shinji was nervous to meet his old squad again. 100 year had passed and he knew well enough that most of the members during his tenures had passed away. If he was lucky he'd meet one or two familiar faces.

"So as your new Captain, there will be changes here and there." Shinji stated. "As one of the few men to serve a nonconsecutive term as Captain I will need some time to readjust." He looked out to everyone there. "I'm counting on y'all to help me and teach me. I'll guide you and guide me."

An hour later, and some tea for both of them, and most members of the Division had assembled for Shinji's speech. Despite the caffeine burst, Momo kept nodding when he made one of his appeals to the crowd, already knowing what her captain was going to say. She _did_ skim his speech a little before he gave it.

"And for the rest of the week, I'll still be lingering around 'fore the Head Captain swears me and the others back in. So lil' Hinamori here will enjoy her last week as Acting-Captain," He turned and gave her his signature grin, "so I want to tell her, and you guys," pointing to the crowd "that you've done wonderfully in holding together all this time."

Putting his hand over his chest he continued "Y'all persevered through hard times and came out on top. I'm proud to return to a Division with such sturdy people."

A lot of people started murmuring, looking away, blushing, applauding, all kinds of reactions really, at his unexpected kind words. Momo piped up at his statement, not included in her notes sent back to him. The speech ended there, Shinji giving a few more words and departing. After the applause ended he moved down to meet Momo.

"Ready Hina-chan?" asked Shinji.

"Yes sir, where now?" she asked, curious as he was walking the opposite way of their rooms.

"We, my precocious little assistant, are gonna go see how Rose and Kensei are doing." He paused, talking and walking "And Mashiro too, don't wanna forget the Super Lieutenant of Division 9." He said chuckling at his own words.

"Super…Lieutenant?" She repeated as if he couldn't tell if she should agree or laugh.

"Yup, you'll see what I mean when we get to Kensei's. But Rose is a bit closer so shelve that thought fer now." He yawned out his last words, arms in his pockets, causally walking and waving to new faces.

_Captain Hirako seems nice, he talks weird but his words and heart are in the right places. Should I ask him now? There aren't too many people, and we are taking our time._ Mulling over her thoughts for a moment she decided now was as good a time as any

"Captain" steeling herself for the talk she's been waiting for.

"Yes?" he replied looking forward and moving at a lackadaisical pace.

"Can I ask you about something?" Here it comes, _don't be afraid Hinamori_ she scolded herself. Aizen was behind her, this is just closure.

"Anything, anytime." _What kind of goofy girl asks if she can ask a question?_

"Why did you choose Aizen as your Lieutenant?"

The smile on his face left and he turned his head upward. _Yeah I thought it was coming._

"Figured you were gonna ask eventually." He sighed before continuing. "I never trusted him." He stated "Never. From the day I met him something was fishy about him." An image of a young but uncertain youth appeared in his mind. A boy surrounded by friends and praise, but seemed only happy and content when looked at.

This surprised Momo. _From when he first met Aizen? That's, that unbelievable._ If he knew him for years but gradually distrusted him that'd be one thing, but from day one? What did he notice that everyone else missed?

"I kept a close eye on him throughout the years. I never raised my suspicions to the others. Why you might be thinking?" He rhetorically asked. "I didn't have anything on him. All I had was a gut feeling about this completely clean and respectable kid." He looked back at her. "If there was any one else that felt like me, they prob'ly either got converted to his side or got offed." Memories of Aizen's mockery about how Shinji couldn't tell who was really Aizen and who was a fake sprung to mind.

Taking in this info she pressed, "How long did you keep your eye on him, and why did you put him so close to you?"

"Isn't it obvious? Keep yer friends close and yer enemies closer." He waved his arm. "I kept my eye on him for dozens of years, and I made him my Lieutenant to make sure he was on a tight leash. If he made a wrong move I'd be the first to know and be able to take him out ASAP."

He stopped walking at that, Momo nearly bumping into him before she caught herself.

"I went too far and not far enough." He turned around and looked her dead in the eye. "I was told you were really close to Aizen fer all _this _happened?" This being the betrayal, personal and at large, and the war. He started going forward again.

She gulped at the direct remark, not so more a question as a rhetorical device for him to keep talking. Nonetheless she answered "I thought I was." "You know knew him personally? His favorite foods and he way he liked his tea?" "Um, yes sir?" Confused that the way where this conversation was going, she guessed "You didn't sir?"

"Nope." He increased his strides by a bit. Passing a large pond near the walkway he continued "I kept him close and made sure I knew where he was, but I didn't get to know him. I didn't learn how he walked or talked, how he liked his tea brewed or the way he oriented his papers when he was finished signing them."

More and more came into her, and more and more pieced together. "And as Lieutenant he had powers and privileges he didn't before. You wanted to catch him in some act, but he made you an accomplice." _Aizen even used his Captain when he knew he was being watched._

"That's about it." He paused again, leaned against a tree, and bent over a bit, looking at her eye level. "We all got suckered, the ones who tried to keep him in our sights, and the ones who didn't mind where or when he went." He promptly continued walking, carefree as the birds above their heads.

_We did didn't we?_ They walked for a while in comfortable silence, physically comfortable on a nice bright day at least, before getting to the 7th Division, a few minute before they arrived Momo asked, "But we won didn't we?"

Turning to her, surprised at her words, he said "Did we? We lucked out and locked him up. Not much of a victory." He shrugged at their so called "victory" and waited for Momo's response.

"Well," _Is Captain Hirako right? We did only luck out. No, I can't think like that, Aizen's locked up in a dark room and we aren't!_ "We did! He's the one stuck underground and we're the ones living with open skies and trees and everything else!" she exclaimed defiantly, right into his face, inches away when he was least expecting it.

"Gah!" He jumping back at her exclamation, "Don't shout in my ear like that! I'm not deaf yet girl!" he ironically blasted down on the girl who wanted to make a statement, not get yelled back at. Stopping when he notices she was crawling back he dusted himself off and turned around.

"Sorry," he said embarrassed at his overreaction. "Anyways yer right: Aizen bit off more than he could chew." He grinned "He's the one in the hole, not us." He waved his hand toward the barracks. "If nothing else we can feel much better about his ass getting kicked then every else, eh Hina-chan?"

She smiled back "Sir yes sir!"

"And if he makes a comeback which Division is gonna be there to kick his sorry butterfly ass?"

"5th is sir!"

"That's what I like to here, now come on, I'm sure Happy Blonde and Sad Blonde are waiting for us." They entered Rose's division, ready to see each other's longtime friend, blondes of different style and outlook.


End file.
